From the author of

In this article, I'll introduce you to the structure and key concepts of the book The Art of Enterprise Information Architecture: A Systems-Based Approach for Unlocking Business Insight. I'll also highlight some of the best practices and tips to derive business insight from the diverse and often huge source of data and information that exists in today's enterprises. By pointing out relevant themes, models, concepts, and aspects of the underlying Enterprise Information Architecture (EIA) Reference Architecture (introduced in the book), I'll show you how to put into perspective some of the emerging trends in chosen industries.

Introduction

This book is designed to reach out to a very wide client audience on a global basis, leveraging IBM's vision and products in the Information Management area. It covers next-generation sales plays of IBM's Smarter Planet and Intelligent Enterprise vision, in addition to "Information Agenda" and "Information on Demand" themes. The book contains forewords by Ron Tolido, renowned speaker on innovation in IT and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) for Capgemini's Northern Europe and Asia Pacific regions, who has also published several books on software engineering; and Dr. Kristof Kloeckner, IBM's CTO, Enterprise Initiatives and Vice President, Cloud Computing Platforms.

The book's early chapters cover the imperative for a new approach to information architecture; an introduction to Enterprise Information Architecture; and data domains, information governance, and information security. Next, we focus on Enterprise Information Architecture, giving a conceptual and logical view as well as a component and an operational model. The final chapters cover new delivery models such as cloud computing, enterprise information integration, and intelligent utility networks.

Writing the book was truly a global effort, as the writing team comprised a total of six employees from different IBM organizations, such as Information Management Research & Development, Global Technology and Business Services, and IBM's Software Group Services. The scope of skills of this author team contributed significantly to the breadth and depth of the topics that are covered in the book.